2009 Ford F-150 Review & Road Test at Automotive.com
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2009 Ford F-150

Below is a review of the 2009 Ford F-150 written by the automotive experts at Motor Trend Magazine. A full evaluation of the driving experience, price, equipment, and specs are here in a structured, easy-to-navigate format from journalists with a wealth ...     read more
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First Look: 2009 Ford F-150

Mid Life Cowboy: It's evolution, not revolution for the new Ford F-150. But there are still a few surprises in this latest edition of the baby boomers' favorite truck.
By Angus MacKenzie
Photography by Wesley Allison
2009 Ford F150 Front Profile

For Matt O'Leary and Pat Schiavone, P415 was just another assignment. To their bosses in Dearborn, though, P415 -- the internal codename for the 2009 Ford F-150 -- was almost certainly the Ford Motor Company's single most important new-model design and development program this decade. The F-150 is a phenomenon: More than 33 million have been sold since the nameplate was launched in 1948, and the F-Series has been America's best-selling truck for 31 years straight. Last year, one in three vehicles carrying the Blue Oval badge sold in America was an F-Series. On a world scale, the F-Series accounts for 13 percent of global Ford Motor Company sales -- including Volvo, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mazda, the lot. This thing is a big deal in Dearborn.

Chief engineer O'Leary and chief designer Schiavone seem remarkably relaxed about it all, however, as they walk us through the detail of the new F-150. That's because they're old hands at this game: They and their teams worked together on P221, the F-150 that launched in 2004. O'Leary's spent 30 years at Ford, most of it working on truck programs. Schiavone grew up around trucks -- his father was in the construction business -- and has helped design three generations of F-150. These guys know trucks.

They understand that, even though barely 20 percent of customers will ever use the 2009 F-150 as a hard-core work tool, it's become more important than ever that it looks truck tough on the outside and is truck tough under the skin. "It's almost the modern horse, a bit of a cowboy culture thing," says Schiavone. "Trucks grew out of the occasional imperative," says O'Leary, "I have the capability if I need it."

Both men also understand that full-size-pickup buyers are among the most conservative consumer groups in the auto biz. Which is why the 2009 F-150 is a carefully considered study in evolution, not revolution. It starts with the fully boxed frame, which is 25 pounds lighter and 10 percent stiffer, thanks to hydroformed high-strength-steel side rails. The double wishbone short- and long-arm front suspension with coil-over shocks shares components with the 2008 Expedition. The 36mm front stabilizer is hollow and eight pounds lighter than the previous component. At the rear are six-inch-longer leaf springs, the extra length forward of the axle centerline for better lateral compliance and reduced rear-axle steer.

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